Vitiligo Triumphs: Two Cases Showcasing Herbal Medicine Success 植物中药治疗白癜风

Case 1

A 45-year-old man, grappling with vitiligo for ten years, sought a third opinion after various unsuccessful treatments. Following appendectomy surgery a decade ago, white papules surfaced on his hand joints. Despite receiving a vitiligo diagnosis and applying prescribed creams, the depigmentation persisted and expanded over the past 5 years.

Desiring a fresh perspective, he turned to our clinic, opting for a tailored herbal formulation taken twice daily. Remarkably, at the fifth month, pigmentation gradually returned. The herbal formula was adjusted and continued, leading to complete clearance of the white patches after 18 months. Throughout the treatment, the patient reported no negative side effects, marking a successful journey in reclaiming pigmentation.

vitiligo a1

Case 2

Meet a resilient 12-year-old boy who, after a mosquito bite on his forehead, found himself facing a vitiligo diagnosis eight months ago. Unwilling to embrace steroids or pimecrolimus cream, his parents sought alternative solutions and turned to our clinic for herbal alternatives.

Opting for herbal medicine, the vitiligo patches responded remarkably. Within 6 months, significant color improvement was evident, and by the 12th month, the once-affected areas achieved full clearance.

vitiligo b1

Discussion

Vitiligo is an acquired disorder characterized by circumscribed depigmented macules and patches that result from the loss of functional melanocytes. Although patients with vitiligo may attribute the onset of their disease to specific life events (e.g. physical injury, sunburn, emotional distress, illness, pregnancy), with the exception of the Koebner phenomenon, there is no proof that these factors cause or precipitate vitiligo.

Uveitis is the most significant ocular abnormality associated with vitiligo. Autoimmune thyroid disease occurs in ~15% of adults and ~5–10% of children with vitiligo, and other less frequently associated conditions include pernicious anemia, Addison disease, lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, and adult-onset insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. Of note, these conditions have been linked to the same autoimmunity predisposition genes as in vitiligo (e.g. PTPN22, NLRP1). Halo melanocytic nevi, alopecia areata, and lichen sclerosus are additional autoimmune skin conditions that may be associated with vitiligo.

Conventional treatment used as same as for psoriasis, eczema, eg. corticosteroids, topical calcineurin inhibitors (tacrolimus or pimecrolimus), Narrowband UVB, Psoralen+UVA. We introduced customized herbal medicine TCM to manage the vitiligo. These cases underscore the efficacy of herbal medicine in addressing vitiligo, offering hope to those seeking alternative treatments for this skin condition.

白癜风是一种功能性黑素细胞丧失引起的局限性脱色斑和斑为主要表现的获得性、色素障碍性疾病。虽然白癜风患者可能将其疾病的发作归因于特定的生活事件（例如物理损伤，晒伤，情绪困扰，疾病，怀孕），但除Koebner现象外，没有证据表明这些因素会导致白癜风。

葡萄膜炎是与白癜风相关的最显着的眼部异常。 自身免疫性甲状腺疾病发生在~15％的成人和约5-10％的白癜风儿童中，其他不太常见的相关疾病包括恶性贫血，艾迪生病，红斑狼疮，类风湿性关节炎和成人发病的胰岛素依赖型糖尿病。 值得注意的是，这些病症与白癜风中相同的自身免疫易感基因有关（例如PTPN22，NLRP1）。 Halo黑色素细胞痣，斑秃和硬化性苔藓是可能与白癜风有关的其他自身免疫性皮肤病。

治疗白癜风的常规方法与治疗牛皮癣，湿疹相同，例如： 皮质类固醇，局部钙调神经磷酸酶抑制剂（他克莫司或吡美莫司），窄带UVB，补骨脂素+ UVA。 此处两个案例我们介绍植物中药来治疗白癜风的状况。

Reference:

  1. Antonella Tosti, Bianca Maria Piraccini. In: Jean Bolognia Julie Schaffer Lorenzo Cerroni, editors. Dermatology: 2-Volume Set 4th Edition. Elsevier; 2017. p1087-1114
  2. C Vrijman, MW Kroon, J Limpens, et al.: The prevalence of thyroid disease in patients with vitiligo: a systematic review. Br J Dermatol. 167:1224-1235 2012 22860695
  3. A Alkhateeb, PR Fain, A Thody, et al.: Epidemiology of vitiligo and associated autoimmune diseases in Caucasian probands and their families. Pigment Cell Res. 16:208-214 2003 12753387
  4. G Laberge, CM Mailloux, K Gowan, et al.: Early disease onset and increased risk of other autoimmune diseases in familial generalized vitiligo. Pigment Cell Res. 18:300-305 2005 1602942
  5. Zhu ML, A Nagavalli, Su MA: Aire deficiency promotes TRP-1-specific immune rejection of melanoma. Cancer Res. 73:2104-2116 2013 23370329

Privacy

In situations where the disease information had already been made publicly available (as evidenced by prior articles), genuine names of individuals have been utilized. Conversely, in instances where there was no pre-existing public disclosure or at the explicit request of patients for privacy, pseudonyms have been employed. Furthermore, identities have been deliberately obscured, and certain contextual details and diagnoses have been modified to hinder any attempts at identification. It is essential to emphasize that the patients and encounters described in this work are authentic, and their consent for publication was duly obtained. As responsible authors, we earnestly implore all our readers to honor the privacy and confidentiality of these individuals. Additionally, certain scenarios, assessments, and clinical interventions have been altered to safeguard the anonymity of both patients and healthcare providers.